One Sunday evening in September, the main hall of a community center here was decked out with ribbons, balloons, and a gyrating disco ball that marked a sonic sweet spot — the optimal position for partygoers to enjoy the clean, punchy (and not too loud) sound of five towering speakers arranged strategically around the room, piping a playlist of pop, funk, rock and dance floor gems for all generations. The Lucky Cloud sound system was in town. … [Read more...]
Gear Review: Sony MDR-1000X Noise-Cancelling Headphones
The latest Bluetooth offering from Sony is targeting a very specific market segment best referred to as "premium noise cancellation," and the company seems pretty confident that with the MDR-1000X headphones ($400), it has a hit on its hands. Sony is claiming "industry-leading noise cancellation" with these luxury cans, which use ostensibly the same drivers as last year's highly regarded MDR-1A headset made for listening to hi-res audio, as … [Read more...]
Gear Review: Denon Heos HS2 Multiroom Speakers
Denon's Heos HS2 multiroom speakers offer hi-res streaming support and Bluetooth connectivity. The look of the Heos hasn't changed in this new iteration – just the internal components have been polished – so the Heos 7 HS2 and Heos 5 HS2 both have the same horizontal teardrop design as the original line, and both are built extremely well with nice attention to detail, well-finished edges, and premium quality materials. The top-of-the-line Heos … [Read more...]
Show Floor Report: Indulgence Show 2016
The inaugural Indulgence Show, born out of the Headroom Show in Chiswick, took place in West London this past weekend in the U.K. Attendees were treated to three shows in one, with the Headroom zone focusing on headphones and portable music players, while Audio London on the upper floors covered high-end hi-fi from the likes of Arcam, Audiolab, B&W, Chord, Clearaudio, Devialet, Dynaudio, KEF, Naim, PMC, and Quad. One of the most … [Read more...]
Gear Review: Optoma NuForce uDAC5 USB DSD DAC
When we listen to music, there’s more often than not a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) in the signal path between the source, the amplifier, and the loudspeakers or headphones that ultimately deliver the sound to our ears. Those two components can make or break your audio experience. When your source playback device is a computer, the quality of the DAC you’re using becomes even more important. Computers are great at lots of things, but … [Read more...]